Summer in the garden

Well we are mid summer in the Fort Lauderdale garden.  We have 6 months of hot sticky wet weather and 6 months of warm dry weather in South Florida.  We had 27 inches of rain since June, and the mosquitoes are out in full force.  The bees, butterflies and birds have been very active.  The photo below is of our state butterfly, the zebra longwing.

To stay cool, I have been drinking iced tea with mint, iced coffee and coconut water.

The royal poinciana trees are in full bloom, and they are always a joy to behold. Here is an article and slide show of the trees.
Grand Dame of trees the royal poinciana

YouTube asked its contributors to make an introduction to their channel, so I completed this last weekend.  My food and garden channel is taking off!  Thank you for subscribing and viewing the videos.

Two weekends ago was the Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden  Mango Festival.  I was asked to write an article there for Examiner.com, and I wrote two.  Here they are!

Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden features a mango festival featuring the mangoes of Mexico

Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden features a mango brunch

I have been so busy picking mangoes and starfruit, pruning, weeding and planting lately in my backyard garden.  At my horticultural therapy business, I have been picking up new accounts and coming up with new activities for the older ones.  In the summer the heat is too strong for the seniors so we do more indoor activities.  I have been very remiss in writing my book though, so much going on!

Thank you for visiting my blog and I enjoy reading yours as well.  It is fun following each other on the social networks, looking forward to seeing you there as well.  

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Anticipating an urban harvest

There is always something to eat from the garden.  Right now the second crop of mangoes are ripening.  This is a rare occurrence, usually we only get a short crop, and are inundated with ripe mangoes in a few short weeks.   This second batch is plentiful, but the fruits are half size.

The critters are already feasting on the unripe mangoes, so I have to pick them early and have them ripen inside the house, in the sink.  I use a large pole picker, as seen in this video.  You are all welcome to subscribe to my youtube channel, greatly appreciated!

The sugar apples are still green, but are starting to turn yellow.  They usually are ready after the mangoes, but this year we are having an overlap.  It is wonderful to pick and eat directly from the tree.  Urban farm fresh!  Just a bike ride from downtown Fort Lauderdale.  This video shows how to slice a star fruit.  Did you know once they are sliced, you can float them in a drink?  Fun!

If I had to redo my garden, I would have planted more edibles.  I am all planted out and the only way to add more is to take trees and shrubs out.  I may do just that...

Thank you so much for visiting my blog, greatly appreciated.  I like following and reading yours as well.  See you again soon.

You can follow me on other social networks, and I will follow you back!

Please subscribe to my YouTube channel for free!
Like my Robert's Tropical Paradise Garden
Subscribe to Miami Garden Reporter articles
Follow me on Pinterest, Google+ and Twitter.